Hurrah!

I finished my photography portfolio today and it's all handed handed in - and now I'm a little bit drunk. Life is awesome :)

I've Been Doing A Lot Of This Lately

Just a quick hello today. I'm just taking a break from finishing (!) my photography portfolio before the hand in tomorrow. Over the weekend, I finally managed to decide which images to use for my final, themed sets - I kept changing my mind - I wanted them all to be perfect. I'm sure everyone understands that feeling.

A Spare Half An Hour

I've been so busy this week that I've not had much time for any craftiness and I had big long list of projects that I wanted to try and challenges that I wanted to participate in - but, as I've not missed a challenge from The Copy & Paste Project since it started, I didn't want to miss the latest one. Even if I didn't have the time to do the project I originally had in mind.

So, here's the result of a spare half an hour. It's a nice, little brooch made from recycled shirt material, cute buttons and a wee bit of love. It's so simple to make and to prove it to you, I'll be posting a little tutorial next week with all the instructions and a little giveaway. Go me!

Have a great weekend!

Home Love (Things I Love Thursdays!)

We finally had our kitchen walls and floors tiled this week - it's only taken us a couple of years to get around to it! We'd had some building work done and a new kitchen fitted and couldn't quite stretch the budget far enough to include the tiling. Last year, when we had some spare cash, we decided to go on holiday instead. Not a decision that we regret in the slightest, but it is really nice to have it looking more finished. I'm going to spend some time this week cleaning and re-painting and the kitchen will look brand new again. Hurrah!

Once the kitchen is finished, I'm declaring a war of love on the rest of the house. There's lots of little things we've been meaning to get around to - hanging artwork in the bedroom, re-painting the front door, dusting. (Oh, how I hate dusting!) I also really, really want to overhaul our office space - which is currently a little worse for wear because we throw everything in through the door when we need to tidy the rest of the house in a hurry. I bet we're not the only ones to have a room like that, right?

1. On the vanity, 2. office wall, 3. My kitchen table, 4. , 5. Corner in the kitchen, 6. Craft Central, 7. Untitled, 8. curtain, 9. Untitled, 10. Untitled, 11. corners of my home: a bedroom peek, 12. The Office, 13. downstairs bathroom, 14. our little people collection, 15. Dining Area, 16. Jules investit mon coin...

This week's Things I Love Thursdays! is a small collection of the inspiration I've hunted down on Flickr. I also want to share this tutorial on How To Make An Ottoman From A Coffee Table from Little Green Notebook, this tutorial on Making A Tin Message Board featured on Design*Sponge and this Vintage Printer's Wooden Tray by Kirsty Neale, which you can see more of on The Copy And Paste Project. I'll have an awesome home one day. In the meantime, wish me luck - I'm off to tackle my burgeoning pile of laundry.

Paying It Forward

On some level, I think I've always believed in karma; that what goes around comes around; that we reap what we sow and I've always believed that when someone is kind to me, though I may not have the chance to repay them myself, I have the chance to balance the books by being kind to someone else - by Paying It Forward.

This isn't going to turn into a philosophical post, I just wanted to share a few things with you that always make me feel a little bit warm and fuzzy inside. Let's start with The Pay It Forward Foundation which is a real life movement based on the book by Catherine Ryan Hyde, which was later turned into the film. Then head on over to Operation NICE which encourages people to be "pro-actively nice" and, if you're not all 'niced' out, try looking up the Random Acts of Kindness Foundation as well.

So, what's brought on all this niceness? Blame it on Kylie. Not the Australian singer (though she does seem insanely nice, doesn't she?) but Kylie who blogs over at 3 Sheets I was instantly taken with Kylie's own inherent niceness and her excitement at participating in a different kind of Paying It Forward. Paying It Forward, Crafty Style.

I've pledged. Will you?

1. The first five (or less) people who leave a comment and pledge to participate will receive a little sumthin', sumthin' from me - lovingly handmade, just for them.

2. I'll make no guarantees that you'll like what you receive. I will try to make it something I think you will like - based on your blog, flickr, whatever - but there are no returns!
3. What I choose to make may be quick, or it may take some time, but you will receive it before the end of 2009.

4. There won't be any clues or sneak peeks (and I love those.) You will only know what you're getting on the day you receive your gift. Once I know that you've received it, I'll post pictures here on my blog and you'll be welcome to post pictures on your own blog or photo-stream.

5. I reserve the right, as Kylie has, to do something strange!!!
6. To Pay It Forward, you will need to copy these 'rules' on your own blog (basic rewording is okay, but the spirit must be the same) and make five things, one for each of the first five people who commit to Pay It Forward on their own blogs.
7. Once I've made your gift, I will e-mail you and you will need to provide your mailing address. (I am UK based and will be happy to send internationally. You should be willing to do the same.)

Who's in?

Ready For The Weekend

I was feeling a little lack lustre yesterday - somedays you just wake up tired - and spent rather too much time fannying about on the internet looking for inspiration - okay, okay - I was avoiding work! Anyway, I came across a video of this little lovely - Chipswow - on This Old Dress and was enthralled. I needed to share.

I especially like the cover version of Regina Spektor's 'Us', but loved this tune best of all. Now press play. I promise it will take you into the weekend with a big smile on your face!

Portrait Love (Things I Love Thursdays!)

Just a quick post for today's Things I Love Thursdays! Today I'm loving portraits; honest opinions; blogging friends; other people's flickr favourites; flip flops; skilled craftsmen; chocolate digestives; long overdue conversations with good friends over long distances; well written books; ginger beer; tents; pyjamas; old family photographs; colour; eccentricity; relaxing baths; the kindness of strangers; notebooks; pastel drawings; re-reading old diaries; making mini-albums; painting my toe-nails; country walks; comedy programmes; edit buttons; morning sunlight; oranges; and genuine, happy people.

1. polaroids past, 2. "the doors we open and close each day..., 3. Smile, 4. The Happy Monday Dance., 5. leftovers, 6. Before..., 7. I am Indifferent to your 'Time Outs', 8. week eighteen, 9. Untitled, 10. all dressed up and not a damn place to go, 11. .., 12. Untitled, 13. Bited, 14. Tightly..., 15. The Red Tights, 16. spine

My (Un)Creative Space

Since stumbling over Leonie's lovely blog - Raglan Guld - and discovering her new love of piano playing, I've been a little bit inspired by her participation in My Creative Space every Wednesday. (Edited. It's supposed to be on a Thursday. Um. Just goes to show I have my head up my...um...bum. You can find out more - like when to play along - by visiting Kootoyoo.)

Unfortunately, my space isn't all that creative at the moment. What's worse it that it's all my own fault.

Oh, yes! I've been tidying.

The good thing has been finding all of those long forgotten "Ooh. I could use that for something." items that have been saved with future creative projects in mind. The bad thing is that, in trying to tidy one room in the house, the remaining rooms now look as though a whirlwind has ripped through the house, bringing it with it all manner of rubbish and helpfully depositing many half empty cups of tea in each room.

Once I've finished concentrating on the final week of my photography course (and putting together the dreaded portfolio!!!) I'll be needing several weeks just to get back on track. In the meantime, I thought I would attempt to garner some sympathy by displaying what will, hopefully, become known as the before pictures of My Creative Space.

The dining room is currently full of crap stuff um...lovely things ready for use, re-use and re-fashioning and can't actually be used as a dining room until everything has found a new place to live.

If anyone has any inspiration for craft storage, please let me know.

30 Things To Do While I'm 30 (Things I Love Thursdays!)

I love making my lists, checking them twice (!) and the satisfaction that comes from crossing things of them!

Just before my thirtieth birthday, I was inspired by some other list lovers (Elise Blaha - 24 and Hula Seventy - 38 Things To Do Before I Turn 39) to put together a list of things that I want to do before my next birthday.

1. Untitled, 2. the full wall, 3. Great Wheel Apocalypto - The Last Ride, 4. Spirito bollente.., 5. rose cupcakes, 6. japanese autumn, 7. Necklush, 8. sneak peek, 9. we are all giants in the worlds we build, with the powers to create and destroy

Today's Things I Love Thursdays! collection is inspired by all of the things on my own list of 30 Things To Do While I'm 30.

1. Start running again and enter the Liverpool 10k.
2. Complete my photography portfolio for my Beginners Photography course. (Check.)
3. De-clutter, de-stash and stick with the Use What You Have philosophy as far as possible.
4. Drink more water.
5. Start a blog. (I'd already done it. Check.)
6. Throw a big garden party.
7. Spruce up the garden in preparation for the garden party!
8. Go camping and sleep under the stars.
9. Go to the fairground. Yeah baby. (Check.)
10. Make these lovely necklaces, this fantastic skirt and this beautiful bracelet instead of just drooling over the pictures.
11. Build sandcastles on the beach.
12. Spend more time with my parents. (Check.)
13. Have cocktails with some good friends.
14. Plan a weekend away; take a road trip or just go somewhere new. (Check and Check.)
15. Refashion my wardrobe, mend old favourites and donate old clothes to charity.
16. Send a message in a bottle.
17. Dust off my bicycle and get my groove on.
18. Go to the cinema at least once a month. (Check.)
19. Take some craft classes. (Check and Check.
20. Learn a new beading stitch. (Check.)
21. Climb a mountain. (Just a small one to begin with!)
22. Start the family tree.
23. Organise my life and home.
24. Display more photographs - get them off the hard drive.
25. Take some photographs of Me and 'The Steve' - using these fabulous people as inspiration.
26. Learn to make pretty cupcakes.
27. Do something that scares me.
28. Clear out and organise our little shed. (I started, I really did. But the bottom fell off!)
29. Put up an inspiration wire or board.
30. Laugh more. (Check & Check )

About Me

Thirty year old dreamer with own home, own teeth and bizarre sense of humour seeks:

Contentment;
Answers;
New adventures;
More time in the day;
A self cleaning house;
And a life full of small pleasures.

Loves:

Mum, dad and the rest of the family;
The 'Steve';
Crafting;
Laughing with friends;
Lists;
And beans on toast;

Dislikes:

Bad manners;
Ignorance;
Being late;
Cucumber;
Train delays;
And grey, miserable weather.

I just wanted to you to know - and to have a proper 'about me.'

Blogs Are Like Buses...

...you wait ages for one and then they all come along at once. I know I've neglected my little blog a bit over the last week - I was feeling a little bit blah and less than inspired.

Well, now actually, that's not true. I've been inspired by other things -the sunshine; new beading patterns; craft classes - like Rachel Denbow's awesome art journalling classes - and trusty challenge blogs like Copy & Paste.

Sometimes, I'm too inspired. Do you know what I mean? I get lots and lots of ideas and want to do them all, but don't know where to start. The latest prompt at Copy & Paste inspired by Alice in Wonderland made it really difficult to decide on an interpretation - it really is a challenge blog!!! I knew I really wanted to do a scrapbook layout about my beliefs, but I honestly couldn't figure out what I believe in.

Did I believe that children are our future? Did I believe that for every drop of rain that falls, a flower grows? Did I believe in a thing called love? I didn't know whether to be facetious or serious. Typically, I only decided in the small hours of the night - it's when I do my best thinking - and I'm actually really, really happy with my final layout.

"I believe in simple things. I believe in the smell of freshly mown lawn; in the hum of streetlife; good friends; true love; staying up late and sleeping in; the miracle of forgiveness; that dreams really can come true; the feeling of grass beneath my feet; sunny days; childish behaviour; imagination; hot toast with lashings of butter; chance. I believe that life is all in the details."

What do you believe in?

Sun Drenched Days And Starlit Nights

Oh! I love summer! I never really thought of myself as a sun worshipper, but as soon as the sun breaks from behind the clouds I become a different person. My energy levels soar: I wake early and, evidently, I stay awake into the small hours of the night! With the windows open and the soft sounds of summer drifting in, it's blissful. Add a Pimms and Lemonade and it's my idea of heaven.

I'm a little late for Things I Love Thursdays! but that's okay because I want to share a layout that I did this morning. Just because I love it :)